Is there a card for soemthing before Open Water Diver?

[scubadiver888]

I was recently on a cruise ship dive excursion. While waiting for the dive operator to pick us up I started chatting with my fellow divers. I like to take this time to find a dive buddy.

One of the divers was telling me about the diving it had been doing and he had similar experience to me. He was obviously someone who had been diving a fair bit. He did diving on his own back home and had been on a few cruise dives.

When the dive operator showed up and checked our cards, it turned out that the person I was chatting with didn't have an Open Water dive card. He had something less, i.e. it did not qualify him for experience dive excursions. He was surprised and upset. If he knew he wasn't qualified for this dive excursion, he would have booked a Discovery dive. Now he wouldn't get any diving at all.

My question is, is there a dive card for Discovery Diver? Does PADI issue a card to say you are qualified for resort diving? I always thought you had to re-qualify every time you wanted to do a discovery dive.

Darrell

[sportdiver_editor]

Hi Darrell,

We always recommend visiting the PADI website and also contacting your local PADI dive shop with certification questions. Here you can talk with local dive instructors and discuss your concerns with someone in the know. When I started diving ... that was the first thing I did. And now, after three years, I still contact my dive instructor when I have questions or problems.

Here's a link to the PADI website page that shows the progression of dive certification and the courses available:

http://www.padi.com/padi/en/kd/dsddetail.aspx

Generally, though, "resort" courses are just introductory courses to familiarize non-divers with diving and are not intended as "certification" programs. Certification course requirements are specific and necessary for the safety of the student taking the course (and for the safety of any future dive buddy). Also, during my first year of diving, I hired a dive master to accompany me on every dive. It was a great learning experience and we went over my performance after every dive. I found this to be extremely helpful!

Hope this helps!

--Sport Diver Editors

[simplelife]

There is a certification before PADI open water called PADI Scuba diver.
It certifies you to dive to a maximum depth of 12M, in conditions similar to those in which you were trained, accompanied by a PADI Divemaster or Instructor.
That's fine to go diving in many places where it's the norm to dive with a professional dive guide, but in some circumstances divers are required to look after themselves, in which case the scuba diver certification wouldn't be sufficient.
The good news though, is that you can upgrade from PADI Scuba Diver to the full PADI Open Water diver certification in just one day (or two at most).
Just involves a little bit more theory, some skills in shallow water and two open water dives. Well worth the effort.
Hopefully that helps!
Regards
Scuba Diving Internships Thailand

[scubadiver888]

Thanks everyone for your replies. I've been busy getting certified as a PADI Pro and didn't have time to log in here. I now see that there is a card which Discover Scuba Divers can get when they complete the DSD course.

It could also have been a PADI Scuba Diver card. We were going to a depth of 60 feet (18m) which would be beyond his limits.

[alexmei]

Hi Darrell,

We always recommend visiting the PADI website and also contacting your local PADI dive shop with certification questions. Here you can talk with cheap clothes local dive instructors and discuss your concerns with someone in the know. When I started diving ... that was the first thing I did. And now, after three years, I still contact my dive instructor when I have questions or problems.

Here's a link to the PADI website page that shows the progression of dive discount clothes certification and the courses available:

http://www.wholesalewebstores.com/

Generally, though, "resort" courses are just introductory courses to familiarize non-divers with diving and are not intended as "certification" programs. Certification course requirements are specific and necessary for the safety of the student taking the course (and for the safety of any future dive wholesale designer clothing buddy). Also, during my first year of diving, I hired a dive master to accompany me on every dive. It was a great learning experience and we went over my performance after every dive. I found this cheap designer clothes to be extremely helpful!

Hope this helps!

--Sport Diver Editors

Hope this helps!

[samtihen]

Yea, you can get a PADI Scuba Diver Cert, but you can't go to 18m with that. Sounds like something was iffy here.